Calibration-free continuous bin level sensor

ABSTRACT

A sensor assembly is described herein that can automatically calibrate itself upon installation into an empty bin, eliminating the need to actually fill the bin to calibrate the level reading. The sensor will provide consistent measurement regardless of material properties (permittivity, density, temperature or moisture content). The capacitive nature of the sensor means that in some circumstances, it will sense the material through plastic/glass/fiber glass thereby allowing the sensor assembly to be mountable on the outside of a bin or container. The electrodes of the sensor system are designed to provide a continuous level reading.

CLAIM OF PRIORITY

This application is a divisional of non-provisional patent applicationSer. No. 14/265,957, which was filed on Apr. 30, 2014 and claimspriority to and the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No.61/819,373, filed May 3, 2013 and titled “CALIBRATION-FREE CONTINUOUSBIN LEVEL SENSOR” both of which applications are incorporated herein byreference in their entireties.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention generally relates to sensors and sensing systems formeasuring material fill levels in containers.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Capacitive sensors are used extensively for level measurement andproximity detection. A conventional capacitive sensor, which includesone or more conductive plates, is sensitive to changes in the dielectricconstants of materials or fluids near or surrounding the plates. Thecapacitive sensor detects the presence or lack of material in thevicinity of the plates by measuring the capacitance between the plates,which is proportional to the dielectric constant of the material fillingthe space between the plates. By measuring this capacitance, thequantity of material (for level measurement) or the existence of thematerial (for proximity detection) may be determined. Similarly, anotherconventional form of capacitive sensor, which uses linear electrodes,e.g., a long wire or strip immersed into a tank or storage bin holding avariable level of fluid or material, measures the level of the fluid ormaterial by sensing and measuring the capacitance of the linearelectrodes.

The accuracy of conventional capacitive sensors is based in large parton the dielectric constant of the material to be sensed. For example,when sensing capacitance, a fifty percent change in relativepermittivity (the dielectric constant) causes a corresponding fiftypercent change in the measured capacitance, i.e., the relationship islinear. Designing and producing capacitive sensors is therefore hamperedby the sensitivity of conventional capacitive sensors to changes in thedielectric constant of the material to be sensed. One continuouscapacitive level sensing system is the CLC series offered bySensorTechnics (www.sensortechnics.com) which appears to estimate a filllevel of a container based on knowledge of the material being measured.If the material changes, however the sensor may require recalibration.

In U.S. Pat. No. 6,539,797 to Livingston et al, there appears to bedisclosed a two electrode sensor embodiment wherein one is fullyimmersed and one partially immersed to measure material levelindependent of the dielectric constant of the material. It appearshowever that the measurements are processed in a more complex manner andcalibration measurements are more numerous than the various embodimentsdisclosed herein.

There is a need for fill level sensing devices for containers that areindependent of permittivity, easy to use, and require minimal to nocalibration.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In one example embodiment, a capacitance based level sensor is providedthat automatically adjusts for the permittivity of the material beingmeasured, such that it will function equally well for bulk materialssuch as grain and seed as well as liquids such as fertilizers,pesticides, oil and gasoline. The sensor will function withoutadditional adjustment even if the material being sensed changes, such asa change from corn to soybeans, for example. In related embodiments, drymaterials such as salt, sand, dirt, dry fertilizers, pesticides andherbicides are also measurable in containers.

In this example embodiment, the sensor system or assembly describedherein can automatically calibrate itself upon installation into anempty bin, eliminating the need to actually fill the bin to calibratethe level reading. The sensor will provide consistent measurementregardless of material properties (permittivity, density, temperature ormoisture content). The capacitive nature of the sensor means that insome circumstances, it will sense the material throughplastic/glass/fiber glass thereby allowing the sensor assembly to bemountable on the outside of a bin or container. The same sensor assemblyis configurable so as to function with bins or containers of differentheights from inches to 10's of feet. The electrodes of the sensor systemare designed to provide a continuous level reading.

Further, the sensor systems described herein circumvent the need to knowexactly what type of material is in a container by making a dualcapacitance measurement. This has at least three significant advantagesover existing sensors: 1) it eliminates the need to calibrate the sensorfor the material being measured; 2) it enables the sensor toself-calibrate at empty and full levels, eliminating the need toactually fill the bin with material to calibrate fill levels; and 3) itenables the same electrical hardware to function with electrodes ofvarious lengths, maximizing installation flexibility.

In a related embodiment, an active shield can be used to protect anexternally mounted sensor from being influenced by rain or other weatherelements. In related embodiments, the sensor systems described hereinare configurable to provide: automatic material calibration,self-calibrating level measurement or measurement of liquid levels.

In a related embodiment, the need for pre-installation into an emptycell can be eliminated which in turn removes the empty binself-calibration step. This totally calibration-free sensor mode isaccomplished by making each of the two capacitance measurements at twofrequencies. This means that the sensor assembly can be installed into apartially filled bin, a significant advantage for retrofitinstallations.

In one example embodiment, a single frequency sensor system is providedherein for measuring a fill level of material in a container that is,but is not limited to, a) material independent; b) frequencyindependent; c) functions with unknown but constant electrodecapacitance; d) functions with arbitrary but known electrode lengths; e)only requires a single empty bin calibration measurement duringinstallation; f) is independent of measurement frequency drift; and g)is independent of parasitic capacitance level.

In another example embodiment, a multi-frequency sensor system formeasuring a fill level of material in a container is provided that hasthe attributes of the single frequency sensor with the exception that itrequires no calibration whatsoever as long as the material beingmeasured has a frequency dependent permittivity.

In another example embodiment, the empty bin calibration constants canbe determined from multi-frequency measurements at two distinct binlevels and stored for later use with materials that have frequencyindependent permittivity, thus necessitating use of a single frequencylevel determination. The benefit of this approach is that no physicalcalibration steps are required to find the constants.

In yet another example embodiment, a multi-frequency method forcalculating a level of fluid or material contained within a container orvessel is provided that includes providing a sensing capacitive elementconfigured from two parallel sensing electrodes positioned adjacent thecontainer or vessel such that changes in a material level cause aproportionate change in a first capacitance of the sensing electrodes,wherein said sensing electrodes have a length LL and a nominalcapacitance per unit length C₀, and wherein the capacitance of saidsensing capacitive element varies in accordance both with the extent ofthe immersion of the parallel electrode in the fluid or material and adielectric constant of the fluid or material. In addition, a referencecapacitive element is provided that is configured from two parallelreference electrodes positioned adjacent to a bottom of the container orvessel, the reference electrodes having a length LR and a capacitanceper unit length C₀, wherein the reference electrodes are adapted to bein contact with the material or fluid within the container, and whereinthe capacitance of the reference electrodes is a function of thedielectric constant of the fluid or material. Further, a measuredcapacitance is determined of the sensing capacitive element at a firstfrequency (f1) and at a second frequency (f2) and a measured capacitanceis determined of the reference capacitive element at the first frequency(f1) and at the second frequency (f2). A level of the fluid or materialwithin the container is generated from a product of:

a ratio of L_(R) (reference electrode length) and L_(L) (sensingelectrode length) and a ratio of:

a. a difference of the measured capacitance of the sensing element atthe first frequency and the measured capacitance of the sensing elementat the second frequency as a numerator;

b. a difference of the measured capacitance of the reference element atthe first frequency and the measured capacitance of the referenceelement at the second frequency as a denominator.

The various embodiments described herein will now be described morefully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings, which areintended to be read in conjunction with both this summary, the detaileddescription and any preferred and/or particular embodiments specificallydiscussed or otherwise disclosed. This invention may, however, beembodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limitedto the embodiments set forth herein; rather, these embodiments areprovided by way of illustration only and so that this disclosure will bethorough, complete and will fully convey the full scope of the inventionto those skilled in the art.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Other important objects and advantages of the present invention will beapparent from the following detailed description of the invention takenin connection with the accompanying drawings in which;

FIG. 1 illustrates an example embodiment of a two sensing element systemfor bin level measurement according to the teachings herein;

FIG. 2 illustrates in an example embodiment of an active shield for abin or tank level sensor as taught herein;

FIG. 3 illustrates a chart of an example bin level measurement of a PVCpipe arrangement using soybean and wheat as taught herein;

FIG. 4 illustrates a chart of various example bin level measurementsusing various example sensor arrangements as taught herein;

FIG. 5 illustrates a schematic a frequency generating circuit andprocessing means for a multi-frequency sensor as taught herein;

FIG. 6 illustrates a chart of oil type sunflower seeds and plastic 6 mmair gun pellets using a measured capacitance example sensor arrangementas taught herein.

FIG. 7 illustrates a chart of the sunflower seeds and air gun pellets ofFIG. 6 and an estimated fill level versus an actual level when apermittivity independent method is used as taught herein; and

FIG. 8 illustrates a photograph of an example bin level measurementapparatus as taught herein.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Following are more detailed descriptions of various related conceptsrelated to, and embodiments of, methods and apparatus according to thepresent disclosure. It should be appreciated that various aspects of thesubject matter introduced above and discussed in greater detail belowmay be implemented in any of numerous ways, as the subject matter is notlimited to any particular manner of implementation. Examples of specificimplementations and applications are provided primarily for illustrativepurposes.

Referring now to the Figures, in particular to FIGS. 1, 2 and 5, in oneexample embodiment, a sensor system or assembly 100 for use on a bin orcontainer 10 consists of two sensing elements 112 and 114, anelectronics module 120 and an optional shield material (not shown) (inthis example, a metal tape). A first sensing element 112 is a bin levelelement that is configured to be long enough to span from a top 12 to abottom 14 of bin 10. A second sensing element 114 is a reference elementthat is for a reference measurement and should preferably be mounted atbottom 14 of bin 10 so that it will normally be fully exposed to thematerial being measured. In this example embodiment, sensing elements112 and 114 each consist of a length of jacketed parallel conductors(such as twin lead radio wire).

In other related embodiments, the sensing elements are mountableinternally or, in the case of plastic, glass, or fiberglass bins, thesensing elements or leads or electrodes may be mounted externally.External mounting for outdoor applications suggests that the sensingelements be covered by metal tape, which is driven by electronics module120, to serve as an active shield.

In this example embodiment, electronics module 120 measures thecapacitance of the two sensing elements 112 and 114. The electrodesserving as a relaxation oscillator timing capacitor circuit thatoperates such that the oscillator frequency is a function of theelectrode capacitance. In a related embodiment, a circuit drives theelectrodes with a constant frequency and uses the output of an impedancedivider or bridge to estimate the capacitance. A schematic diagram of anexample embodiment of a frequency generating circuit 500 and processingmeans for a multi-frequency sensor is shown in FIG. 5. The reference andbin level sense electrodes are each driven by a Schmitt Trigger basedastable oscillator. The frequency of oscillation is inverselyproportional to the product of the feedback resistance and the electrodecapacitance. The frequency of the oscillators can be controlled bychanging the feedback resistance in the Schmitt Trigger which can beaccomplished with a processor controller. For the oscillators shown inthe schematic,

${f\mspace{14mu}({kHz})} = \frac{9.5592 \cdot 10^{8}}{R_{feedback}\mspace{14mu}{({kOhm}) \cdot C_{electode}}\mspace{14mu}({pF})}$where R_(feedback) is the total feedback resistance (the parallelresistance when the frequency select switch is closed). C_(electode)includes capacitance associated with the material in the bin orcontainer plus any constant parasitic capacitance. The frequency selectswitches decrease the resistance by about a factor of 10 over the openswitch resistance which in turn increases the oscillation frequency by afactor of 10. The values shown lead to oscillation frequency of 400 kHzwhen the switch is open and 4 MHz when the switch is closed when theelectrode capacitance is about 20 pF. The processor monitors thefrequency of oscillation and can thereby calculate the electrodecapacitance. The processor performs the appropriate algebraic steps todetermine the bin level and outputs that result in the form of PWM dutycycle, frequency, analog voltage, or digital value.

In situations where electrodes are mounted on the exterior of the bin,active shielding may be required to prevent unwanted bias in thecapacitance measurements by external influences such as rain and nearbymaterial. A partial electric circuit 200 describing the active shieldingof sensor system 100 is shown in FIG. 2. In this example electriccircuit 200, one electrode from each sensing element 112A (or 114A (notshown)) is held at electrical ground 210 and the other active electrode112B (or 114B (not shown)) is driven at some frequency by themeasurement circuit, which in this example is an oscillator 220 andamplifier combination 230. Included in the electronics is an amplifierfor each active electrode that follows the signal driving thatparticular active electrode. This signal is applied to a shield tapemember 240 that is placed over the sensing electrodes in external binoutdoor mounting applications.

Referring again to FIG. 1, in normal operation, bin level sensingelement 114 is partially buried (or covered) in some bulk material orpartially submerged in a liquid. For FIG. 1, the following parameters inthis example embodiment are defined as follows:

C₀ is sensing element capacitance per unit length (11.8 pF/m for 300twin lead)

L is the length of the sensing element in meters (m)

R is the length of the reference element in meters

H is the height of the material in the bin in meters (unknown)

The bin level can be expressed as a percentage of the total electrodelength L:

${{bin}\mspace{14mu}{level}} = {{\frac{\left( {C_{tot} - C_{{tot}_{empty}}} \right)}{\left( {C_{ref} - C_{{ref}_{empty}}} \right)} \cdot \frac{R}{L} \cdot 100}\%}$

C_(tot) is the total capacitance of the bin level sensing element(measured)

C_(ref) is the total capacitance of the reference sensing element(measured)

C_(tot) _(empty) is the capacitance of the bin level sensing elementwhen the bin is completely empty (measured during installation)

C_(ref) _(empty) is the capacitance of the reference sensing elementwhen the bin is completely empty (measured during installation)

Significant in this expression for calculating or measuring the binlevel is that all of the physical parameters are eliminated: 1) the binsensing element length L can be arbitrary from installation toinstallation; 2) the reference sensing element length R can bearbitrary; 3) the nominal capacitance of the sensing elements C₀ can beunknown; and 4) the material permittivity ε′ can be unknown. The factthat the material permittivity can be unknown further implies that: a)the material density can be unknown; b) the material temperature can beunknown; c) the material moisture level can be unknown; and d) themeasurement frequency can be unknown.

In various embodiments, some of the sensor systems described herein areconfigured to determine the bin level as long as an empty binmeasurement of the capacitance is made of the two sensing elementsduring sensor installation. The empty measurements can be made withoutany material in the bin, but this only needs be done once. In normaloperation, the reference sensing element is assumed to be fully exposedto the material in the bin, meaning it is best mounted at the bottom ofthe bin. The electrical measurements used to determine bin level caneasily be biased by parasitic contributions to capacitance. Hence,additions to the overall capacitance measurement due to wiring,circuitry, installation, etc., are not influenced by the permittivity ofthe material in the bin. The various measurement methods developed forbin level minimize the parasitic contributions through the differencesof the measured capacitance in the numerator and denominator,effectively canceling out parasitic contributions to the measurement.

In a related embodiment, the need for calibration measurements of anytype (including the empty bin measurement during installation) can beeliminated entirely, making this a calibration free sensor. This isaccomplished by making capacitance measurements of the level sensing andreference electrodes at two frequencies, nominally about 100 kHz andabout 1 MHz, resulting in the following expression for the bin level:

${{bin}\mspace{14mu}{level}} = {{\frac{\left( {C_{{tot}_{f\; 1}} - C_{{tot}_{f\; 2}}} \right)}{\left( {C_{{ref}_{f\; 1}} - C_{{ref}_{f\; 2}}} \right)} \cdot \frac{R}{L} \cdot 100}\%}$

C_(tot) _(f1) is the measured capacitance of the bin level sensingelement taken at frequency f1

C_(tot) _(f2) is the measured capacitance of the bin level sensingelement taken at frequency f2

C_(ref) _(f1) is the measured capacitance of the reference level sensingelement taken at frequency f1

C_(ref) _(f2) is the measured capacitance of the reference level sensingelement taken at frequency f2

All four measurements are taken at the time of the level measurementmeaning there is no separate set of calibration measurements.Furthermore, all of the properties of the single frequency bin levelmethod (and mathematical expression) remain intact: 1) the level sensorrequires no calibration; 2) the level sensor is material independent,requiring no knowledge of material permittivity; 3) the level sensor isfrequency independent, requiring no knowledge of the measurementfrequencies which in turn means that the frequencies can drift over timewithout affecting the level measurement; 4) no knowledge of theelectrode capacitance C₀ is required, the only requirement being thatthe capacitance per unit length be constant; and 5) the electrodelengths R and L can be arbitrary in size but their values must be known.

Substantially accurate application of the two frequency bin level methodas taught herein depends on the permittivity of the sensed materialvarying with frequency. This generally is not a problem for hygroscopicmaterials such as grain but for some materials, like glass, this willpresent a challenge. For constant permittivity materials, it ispreferable to utilize one of the single frequency methods as taughtherein for bin level with its requirement of a single empty bincalibration measurement.

The need for calibration can also be eliminated for the single frequencyconstant permittivity scenario if the multi-frequency approach can firstbe applied to material that has frequency dependent permittivity. Inthis case, the empty container calibration constants C_(tot) _(empty)and C_(ref) _(empty) can be determined algebraically from bin levelmeasurements computed using the multi-frequency method. These levels,H1/L and H2/L can then be combined with the capacitance measurements atthe two levels to determine the empty container capacitance values asfollows:

$C_{{ref}_{empty}} = \frac{\left( {C_{{{tot}@H}\; 1} - C_{{{tot}@H}\; 2}} \right) - {\frac{H_{1}}{R} \cdot C_{{{ref}@H}\; 1}} + {\frac{H_{2}}{R} \cdot C_{{{ref}@H}\; 2}}}{\left( \frac{H_{2} - H_{1}}{R} \right)}$$C_{{tot}_{empty}} = {C_{{{tot}@H}\; 1} + {\frac{H_{1}}{R} \cdot \left( {C_{{ref}_{empty}} - C_{{{ref}@H}\; 1}} \right)}}$

In both expressions, the ‘@H1’ and ‘@H2’ refer to previously definedcapacitance measurements C_(tot) and C_(ref) made at fill levels H1 andH2 respectively. The levels will preferably differ from one another byabout 10% to about 25%. The frequencies of measurement for each filllevel are not required to be the same.

The benefits of using two frequencies to determine the single frequencycalibration constants are that it is not necessary to perform a physicalcalibration measurement and the resulting calibration constants can beupdated continuously, thus accounting for shifts in parasiticcapacitance. When constant permittivity material is encountered, thesensor assembly can automatically shift to a single frequencycalculation using the most recent calibration values. During singlefrequency operation, the calibration values cannot be updated.

Referring now to FIG. 3 there is illustrated a graph 300 of datagathered of an example bin level measurement of a PVC pipe arrangementusing soybean and wheat as taught herein. The sensor system was alsotested on salt. The grain level test consisted of taping the twin leadto the outside of a 34 inch long and one inch diameter PVC (plastic)pipe. The pipe was filled with either soybean or wheat grain and theeffect of the capacitance change on an oscillator frequency wasrecorded, with the oscillator frequencies ranging from about 97 KHz toabout 100.5 KHz. The plot shows the performance of sensor assembly 100on both wheat and soybeans. The horizontal axis is approximately 10thsof an inch of grain height. In this example embodiment, the grain levelwas sensed through the plastic pipe; hence a sensor attached to theoutside (or inside) of a plastic grain tank is operative. As shown, thedifferent grains have different slopes on the curves. Because this is acapacitance sensor, different materials will read differently, but thebin level calculation will still be “measured material” independent.Further, the moisture level of a fill material may normally affect thereading, however the permittivity independence of the sensor assemblytaught herein means this should not affect the bin level measurement.

Referring now to FIG. 4 there is illustrated a graph 400 of variousexample bin level measurements using various example sensor arrangementsas taught herein. In these example embodiments, a Clapp oscillator witha 300 ohm twin lead was used. Frequency (vertical axis) was plottedagainst the container height (in inches—horizontal axis) for: 1) analuminum cylinder; 2) inside a plastic bucket: 3) 2 revolutions aroundthe outside of the container; 4) and electrodes located on both walls ofa container. In one embodiment, the twin lead was wrapped around abucket containing salt and the sensor was able to detect the salt level.In another related embodiment, the sensor was attached to the supportstructure inside a tank and the level reading was still generated. Inthese example embodiments, the oscillator frequencies ranged from about4.47 MHz to about 4.54 MHz.

Referring now to FIGS. 6-8, there are shown data plots for oil-typesunflower seeds versus airgun pellets using an apparatus shown in FIG. 8according to the teachings herein. In particular, FIG. 8 illustrates aphotograph of an example bin level measurement apparatus used to makecapacitance measurements as the material level is varied in a 36″ longacrylic tube with a 0.1″ wall thickness. The electrodes, consisting of300 Ohm twinlead transmission line, are attached to the outside of thetube. This “through the wall” measurement is intended to demonstrate theversatility of a capacitance measurement.

FIG. 6 illustrates a chart 600 of oil type sunflower seeds and plastic 6mm air gun pellets using a measured capacitance example sensorarrangement as taught herein. The plotted data shows the measuredcapacitance from this apparatus versus the fill level for two differentfill materials: oil type sunflower seeds and plastic 6 mm air gunpellets. Also shown in chart 600 are the linear fit equations for thecapacitance measurements for both materials. These equations are thecalibration expressions that would be used to estimate fill level fromcapacitance measurement. A well-known weakness of prior art singleelectrode level measurements is that the calibration curves aredependent on the fill material.

FIG. 7 illustrates a chart 700 of the sunflower seeds and air gunpellets of FIG. 6 and an estimated fill level versus an actual levelwhen a permittivity independent method is used. In particular, chart 700shows estimated fill level versus the actual level when a permittivityindependent method is used from the ratio of level and referencecapacitance measurements. As chart 700 shows, the single permittivityindependent method exhibits highly accurate results for both the plasticpellets and the sunflower seeds. Further, with this method no materialdependent calibration is required.

In one example embodiment, a level measurement system as taught hereinthe electrodes can be mounted either internal to any material containeror external to a non-metallic material container with external mountingutilizing an active electrical shield to prevent biasing of thecapacitance measurement by external influences such as rain or proximityof other materials.

In a related embodiment, a level measurement system as taught hereinuses the multi-frequency capacitance measurements collected at differentfill levels and can be mathematically manipulated so as to estimate thetotally empty container capacitance enabling the sensor to be utilizedin a single frequency mode for materials with permittivity that isindependent of frequency. This single frequency mode taught hereincircumvents the need for physical calibration measurements by using themulti-frequency level estimate as the known calibration point for thesingle frequency measurement.

The advantages of the various embodiments described herein include butare not limited to providing continuous level information in the form ofa frequency output, an analog output, PWM signal, or digital; andproviding discrete signals for particular levels (half full, ¾ full,etc.) and the output is linear. Because continuous level sensing isavailable, the system can also provide flow rate information bydifferentiating changes in the bin level. In a related embodiment, anactive shield is included which removes unwanted external influencesfrom the measurement.

The following patents that relate to capacitive sensors are hereinincorporated by reference in their entirety and constitute part of thedisclosure herein: U.S. Pat. No. 6,539,797 and 2006/0236275 to Breed.

Having thus described several illustrative embodiments, it is to beappreciated that various alterations, modifications, and improvementswill readily occur to those skilled in the art. Such alterations,modifications, and improvements are intended to be part of thisdisclosure, and are intended to be within the spirit and scope of thisdisclosure. While some examples presented herein involve specificcombinations of functions or structural elements, it should beunderstood that those functions and elements may be combined in otherways according to the present invention to accomplish the same ordifferent objectives. In particular, acts, elements, and featuresdiscussed in connection with one embodiment are not intended to beexcluded from similar or other roles in other embodiments. Accordingly,the foregoing description and attached drawings are by way of exampleonly, and are not intended to be limiting.

What is claimed is:
 1. A multi-frequency method for calculating a levelof fluid or material contained within a container or vessel comprisingthe steps of: providing a sensing capacitive element configured from twoparallel sensing electrodes positioned adjacent the container or vesselsuch that changes in a material level cause a proportionate change in afirst capacitance of the sensing electrodes, wherein said sensingelectrodes have a length LL and a nominal capacitance per unit lengthC0, wherein the capacitance of said sensing capacitive element varies inaccordance both with the extent of the immersion of the parallelelectrode in the fluid or material and a dielectric constant of thefluid or material; providing a reference capacitive element configuredfrom two parallel reference electrodes positioned adjacent to a bottomof the container or vessel, said reference electrodes having a length LRand a capacitance per unit length C0, wherein said reference electrodesare configured to be in contact with the material or fluid within thecontainer, and wherein the capacitance of said reference electrodes is afunction of the dielectric constant of the fluid or material; andproviding an electronics module configured to measure a material orfluid level of the container, said electronics module having a pluralityof oscillators, a plurality of amplifiers and a processor to processsignals received from the sensing and reference capacitive elements,wherein said oscillators are electrically coupled to said sensing andreference electrodes so as to generate a frequency signal to beprocessed by said processor thereby determining a capacitance of saidsensing and reference electrodes, to thereby calculate a levelmeasurement of the material or fluid in the container, by: determining ameasured capacitance of the sensing capacitive element at a firstfrequency (f1) and at a second frequency (f2); determining a measuredcapacitance of the reference capacitive element at the first frequency(f1) and at the second frequency (f2); and generating the level of thefluid or material within the container from a product of: a ratio of LR(reference electrode length) and LL (sensing electrode length) and aratio of: a. a difference of the measured capacitance of the sensingelement at the first frequency and the measured capacitance of thesensing element at the second frequency as a numerator; b. a differenceof the measured capacitance of the reference element at the firstfrequency and the measured capacitance of the reference element at thesecond frequency as a denominator; and wherein each of the sensingcapacitive and reference capacitive elements using multi-frequencymeasurements are used to determine an empty container capacitance; andwherein a total capacitance is determined of the sensing capacitiveelement and a total reference capacitance of the reference capacitiveelements when the reference capacitive element is immersed in the fluidor material, thereby avoiding the need to perform a physical calibrationmeasurement of the container.
 2. The method according to claim 1 furthercomprising the step of providing a metallic shield on said sensingelectrodes mounted external to the container and driving said metallicshield at the same frequency and potential as a driven electrode.
 3. Asingle frequency method for calculating the level of fluid or materialcontained within a container or vessel comprising the steps of:providing a sensing capacitive element configured from two parallelsensing electrodes positioned adjacent the container or vessel such thatchanges in a material level cause a proportionate change in a firstcapacitance of the sensing electrodes, wherein said sensing electrodeshave a length LL and a nominal capacitance per unit length C0 andwherein the capacitance of said sensing capacitive element varies inaccordance both with the extent of the immersion of the parallelelectrode in the fluid or material and a dielectric constant of thefluid or material; providing a reference capacitive element configuredfrom two parallel reference electrodes positioned adjacent to a bottomof the container or vessel, said reference electrodes having a length LRand a capacitance per unit length C0, wherein said reference electrodesare configured to be in contact with the material or fluid within thecontainer, and wherein the capacitance of said reference electrodes is afunction of the dielectric constant of the fluid or material; andproviding an electronics module configured to measure a material orfluid level of the container, said electronics module having a pluralityof oscillators, a plurality of amplifiers and a processor to processsignals received from the sensing and reference capacitive elements,wherein said oscillators are electrically coupled to said sensing andreference electrodes so as to generate a frequency signal to beprocessed by said processor thereby determining a capacitance of saidsensing and reference electrodes, to thereby calculate a levelmeasurement of the material or fluid in the container, by: determiningan empty container capacitance of each of the sensing capacitive andreference capacitive elements using multi-frequency measurements;determining a total capacitance of the sensing capacitive element and atotal reference capacitance of the reference capacitive elements whenthe reference capacitive element is immersed in the fluid or material;and generating the level of the fluid or material within the containerfrom a product of: a ratio of LR (reference electrode length) and LL(sensing electrode length) and a ratio of: a. a difference of the totalcapacitance and the empty capacitance of the sensing element as anumerator; b. a difference of the total reference capacitance and theempty capacitance of the reference element as a denominator; therebyavoiding the need to perform a physical calibration measurement of thecontainer and accounting for shifts in parasitic capacitance values.